Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-07-24
Fine Harbor Prospects at san

Col. Won Schmidt's extensive ma
chinery for deepening and improving
the entrance to the harbor at San
Pedro, has left San Francisco, and is
now on its way to that port. The con-
tract includes the construction OF one
or more stone jetties, reaching from
points beyond Timms's, and SO run
as to confine the ebb and flow of the
channel at the entrance to a suffi-
ciently narrow space as to cause the
action of the tides to still furth n scour
the bar and turn the reactionary sedi-
ment towards the northern point,
where it will be caught and perma-
nently embarked against the seaward
sides of the jetties. The United States
engineers have taken the tidal effects
into consideration, and have perfected
their plans to secure the maximum
outflow of debris and the mini
mum of return from the inflow
of the tide. At the same time
they will so train the loosened detri-
tus as to cause it to be carried by the
currents into places that will cause it
to form embankments that will
strengthen the formed land stretches
on each side of the mouth of the har-
Dor. The whole work has been car
ried out on scientific principles, gov
erned by well ascertained tidal laws,
and as it progresses the wisdom of the
plans will be demonstrated by the con-
slant deepening of the entrance and
the strengthening of the en-
bankments. A powerful dredg-
ing machine accompanies the outfit,
and this will be used upon the shall
lowest part of the bar. 1t is armed
with ponderous knives which will cut
into the concrete rib which sets out
from Dead Mans island, and which is
really the most formidable obstruction
to the entrance. This concrete rib has
already been deepened some fifteen
feet, so that at ordinary low tide the
bar is bovered by about seventeen feet
of water. 1t is the intention to deepen
the entrance to twenty-three or four
feet at ordinary low tide. When this
is accomplished the largest draft ves-
sells can be safely brought inside, for
the depth of water in the interior basins
is now in places greater than this, and
it can, by dredging, be made as deep
as any exigency of the shipping may
require. This is mere matter of
ordinary expense, for the estuary being
composed, to unknown depths, of soft
alluvium, the displacement will give
any amount of water that may be
deemed necessary. The rock out of
which to construct the jetties will be
brought from Catalina Island. We
have great confidence in the very
material progress that will be made in
improving the entrance to San Pedro
harbor by the carrying out of the
present contract. Col. Won Schmidt is
a clear-headed engineer, and generally
accomplishes what he starts out
to do. ii he succeeds, as he
expects to, in deepening the en-
trance three or four feet be
fore the season for work closes, our
larbor will be accessible to much
d9eper-draft class of vessels than here
tofore. San Diego can count on
twenty-one feet'6f water on her bar at
ordinary low tide. We look to have
at least that much at San Pedro in
few months. We shall then be in a
position of rivalry with the best ports ON
this coast, and will reach out for a
maritime commerce that will play no
inconspicuous part in the mercantile
prosperity of Los Angeles.